>>It's true that guaranteed issue requirements cause premiums to rise. So what to do? Shall we just keep out of the way and let insurance companies deny coverage to people who are more likely to end up needing it?
The coverage your looking for is not insurance. Insurance is insuring against imprecisely known risk, to the extent the risk is known, payments are determined by statistical actuarial methods. I suppose coverage for people with pre-existing conditions could be offered, but it would probably be unaffordable. Asking for them to be covered at the same rate as anyone else is asking for charity not insurance. Its its compelled than its ceasing the wealth of others to give to them as a group.<<
I will once again use myself as an example. I don't have a pre-existing condition. What I have is a medical history that looks bad, actuarially. I have had colon cancer, and it has metastasized to two different organs. My most recent scan was clear, however, which means I don't have cancer now.
Does that mean I can get insurance? Hell, no. Statistically, a person with my history has a very high probability of being diagnosed with cancer again. But of course, since statistics don't predict outcomes for individuals. So there's no telling in my case. I might live for decades more, or I could end up like the vast majority of people with my history; dead within five years.
As an insurer evaluating risk, and looking to make a profit, I wouldn't cover someone like me. And of course, if a person actually has an active case of diabetes, or heart disease, or cancer, no insurer who wants to make a profit is going to want him or her as a customer. Fine.
So I'll repeat my question. What do we do about this, as a society? It's clear that there aren't many people who can afford to pay for treatments for cancer or any of those other aforementioned diseases out of pocket. It's also clear that if they don't get treatment, they will die before their time.
I, personally, don't think that we, as a society, should just say, "Sorry. Insurance companies aren't charities, so obviously they can't help you. If you're not 65, you don't qualify for Medicare. So if you can't afford to pay for your treatment yourself, sorry, you're out of luck."
I'm not going to assume that you think we should say that, as a society. But if you don't, then I would like to know what you think we should do instead.
I don't see any kind of "free market" answer. Do you?
Interestingly, every single other developed nation in the world has an answer, and in no case does that answer end up costing even half as much of each nation's GDP as ours does. And none of the answers rely solely on the private sector. |
